


jeno the teenage witch

by hyuckheis (johnyongs)



Series: blue lemonade [1]
Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Urban Fantasy, Donghyuck is a cat (sort of), Jaemin just wants to date Jeno, Jeno and Renjun are witches, M/M, Mark is a warlock
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-08
Updated: 2018-08-08
Packaged: 2019-06-23 15:56:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,690
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15609807
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/johnyongs/pseuds/hyuckheis
Summary: "What the fuck isthat?""It's mycat,you idiot.""I'm pretty sure cats aren't supposed to havesix legs?"orJeno gets partnered on a project with the guy who's been asking him out all semester.





	jeno the teenage witch

**Author's Note:**

  * For [jenuyu](https://archiveofourown.org/users/jenuyu/gifts).



> happy birthday meggles !!!! the first of 96z to become old TT____TT ill pray for u

Jeno sinks into the couch with a loud groan. He lets his body sink steadily into the too-old, too-worn cushions, and closes his eyes, wanting nothing more than the sweet, sweet embrace of death. 

 

And then Donghyuck jumps into his lap. Jeno peeps open one eye to see his childhood-best-friend-turned-six-legged-cat peering up at him with his sharp violet eyes. Jeno sighs, patting Donghyuck half-heartedly, but clearly that’s not enough, if Donghyuck slapping him in the face with his paw is any indication. 

 

“Alright, alright, jeez,” Jeno huffs, struggling to sit up in the tar pit that is his living room couch, before gathering Donghyuck up into his arms and pressing a kiss to Donghyuck’s glossy black fur. He meows in content, and Jeno finds himself relaxing a little, despite the stress of the day. 

 

“I heard an unnecessarily loud groan and thought it was you,” Renjun says, appearing from the threshold of their kitchen, carrying an Erlenmeyer flask half-filled with a fluorescent blue liquid. He raises an eyebrow inquisitively, and Jeno is almost convinced that he cares. “What’s wrong?” 

 

“What makes you think something is wrong?” 

 

Renjun rolls his eyes. “It’s either that or you were jerking off.” 

 

“Ha ha,” Jeno says drying, jolting a little when Donghyuck butts his head under Jeno’s jaw, wanting more pets. “You’re so needy,” Jeno huffs under his breath, and Donghyuck just digs his claws into Jeno’s arm. 

 

“What’ve you got there?” Jeno asks, once he’s extracted Donghyuck’s grip from his flesh. He needs to buy some time before explaining his new predicament to Renjun and undoubtedly getting laughed at. 

 

Renjun looks at the flask and swirls the liquid around. If anything, it starts to look even  _ more _ neon. “Oh, I’m working on a sleeping draught for Mark.” 

 

Jeno raises an eyebrow. “Normal sleeping draughts don’t  _ glow, _ Jun.” 

 

“Oh, that’s the powdered rat spleens.” Renjun’s snaggletooth appears as he smiles, not entirely reassuring. “Gives it that extra pop. Plus it’ll knock Mark out until next Sunday.” 

 

“Why does Mark need to sleep for like, nine days?” Jeno thinks that even if Mark was unconscious for nine days straight he’d be okay. It’s not even the longest the warlock has slept for, if Jeno counts the two weeks he knocked out after high school graduation. 

 

Renjun rolls his eyes, like Jeno is supposed to know even though there’s  _ no way _ Jeno could possibly know because Renjun doesn’t tell him anything in the first place. “He texted me this morning, he’ll be back in a couple of days. Apparently conjuring up malicious spirits really takes a toll on you.” 

 

Jeno recalls that Mark has been on the east coast for the last couple of weeks, raising up demons at some military boarding school. He shrugs. “That’s valid.” 

 

“So are you gonna tell me what’s wrong or…?” At the reminder, Jeno just groans again. “Okay, I’m just gonna go put this back on the burner and we’ll talk. Just… try not to die while I’m gone.” 

 

When Renjun disappears into the kitchen, Donghyuck swats Jeno again, this time right in the mouth. Jeno splutters, wiping the fur off his tongue on his shirt sleeve. “In my mouth? Really?” Donghyuck just blinks at him, eyes wide and innocent, and Jeno melts, like he always does.

 

“Why are you so damn annoying?” Jeno coos in the baby oice he uses specifically for Donghyuck, cradling the cat in his arms and rubbing under his chin. “How did I get stuck with you?” Donghyuck melts at the attention, purring, and Jeno can feel the vibrations in his hands. “Why are you so cute?” 

 

As Jeno peppers kisses all over Donghyuck’s face, he wonders whether he prefers him as a human or a cat. Obviously, if they could  _ just _ find a way to reverse the spell Mark accidentally cast on Donghyuck two years ago, it would be nice to have him in his human form. But Jeno suspects Donghyuck rather likes being a cat-- likes getting away with being a brat, taking advantage of people’s heads as napping spots, eating and sleeping the days away while Renjun and Jeno have to go to college and get degrees like normal witches. 

 

Jeno is in the middle of calling Donghyuck his  _ cinnamon apple sugar plum cupcake sunshine _ when Renjun walks back into the living room. He pauses at the threshold, watching Jeno and Donghyuck. “You guys are so fucking weird,” he says, shaking his head as he drops onto the beside Jeno. 

 

“You just don’t understand our relationship,” Jeno says, kissing Donghyuck between the eyes, before dropping him back on the ground. Ever the rebel, Donghyuck just hops back up onto the couch and perches himself on Jeno’s shoulder to preen himself. 

 

“Whatever. So, for the third time, what happened today?” Renjun asks, ignoring the Jeno and Donghyuck’s obvious codependency issues. 

 

Jeno sighs. Time to bite the bullet. “So you know my biochem lab?” 

 

“The upper div one that makes you stress-sweat in the middle of the night?” 

 

“Yeah that--” Jeno gapes at Renjun. “How the hell did you know that?” 

 

Renjun flashes his teeth. “I know everything. Don’t question it.” 

 

Jeno opens his mouth, then closes it. After many years of friendship, Renjun still makes him uneasy. “Right, yeah, so. Remember Jaemin?” 

 

Renjun thinks for a moment. “Doesn’t ring a bell.” 

 

Jeno sighs sharply through his mouth. He doesn’t blame Renjun for not remembering, but now Jeno has to explain the situation to him again. And get laughed at. Again. “He’s that guy-- the one who asked me out the first day of class.” 

 

A light shines in Renjun’s normally dead eyes. “Oh, that one! Yeah, oh my god, that was a classic.” 

 

Jeno grimaces. “He’s been like… trying to flirt with me all semester? I think? And it’s just super weird?” 

 

“God knows why, when you’re so ugly,” Renjun says. Jeno kicks him in the ankle, and Renjun retaliates by punching him in the arm, much, much harder. Jeno hisses, rubbing at the sore muscle. “Why don’t you just like… I dunno, ignore him?” 

 

“He’s my lab partner, Jun, I can’t just  _ not _ talk to him. I just-- He’s weird. He keeps asking about me? Like how I’m doing? If I slept okay? What kind of coffee I like?” 

 

“It’s almost like he’s interested in you,” Renjun deadpans, and Jeno lets out a frustrated noise.    
  


“It’s not that simple, okay? He just-- He has these eyes, right? And he stares at me like--” Jeno widens his eyes and stares as intensely as he can at Renjun, until Renjun shoves his hands in his face and pushes him away.

 

“Okay, okay, it’s kinda creepy, but--” Renjun narrows his eyes. “Is he ugly?”

 

Jeno thinks of Jaemin’s sharp jaw, his rows of pearly white teeth, his auburn hair, always combed back immaculately. “No.” 

 

“Is he like, super short then?” 

 

Jaemin has a couple of inches on Jeno. “No…” 

 

“Is he a jerk?” 

 

Jeno can’t recall Jaemin being anything but a gentleman, if he ignores all the times Jaemin blatantly stares at his mouth. “No?” 

 

Renjun frowns. “So he’s hot, he’s tall, he’s nice, and he’s interested in you,” he lists. “I don’t see the problem here.” 

 

“The problem--” Jeno splutters, “Is  _ this-- _ ” He motions at the space around them, like it’ll explain everything. There’s nettle and yarrow growing in planters hanging from the ceiling, ivy covering their walls and winding around the shelves and bookcases. Their kitchen is no better-- a bizarre mix of a chemistry lab and a greenhouse. Jeno doesn’t even want to mention the wyvern egg he’s hatching in his room, his desk taken up by a Bunsen burner to keep it at the optimal temperature. 

 

“What if he asks to come over? How do I explain this? How do I tell him I’m--”

 

“Okay, okay, let me get this straight--” Renjun holds out a hand to stop Jeno mid-ramble. “You’re freaking out about this project because you don’t want Jaemin to find out you’re a witch?” Jeno nods slowly. “Why don’t you just… work on it at his place? Or in a coffee shop?” 

 

Jeno feels stupid when Renjun says common sense stuff like that. “Well… yeah but…” 

 

Renjun looks fed up. “But?” 

 

“What if I…” Jeno sinks into the couch. “What if I end up… liking him?” 

 

“God forbid you end up liking a guy who likes you too.” 

 

“Your sarcasm is really not appreciated right now! I’m having a crisis!” 

 

Renjun rolls his eyes, for just about the millionth time today. “Then you figure it out. Plenty of humans know about magic. If he takes it badly, just wipe his memory or something.” 

 

“But I suck at memory charms,” Jeno whines. 

 

“Sounds like a you problem.”

  
  


☾

  
  


It’s one in the morning when Jeno gets into bed. His duvet is the perfect temperature, thanks to the cooling spell Doyoung taught him as a kid, and Donghyuck is curled on top of it on his side, sleeping peacefully. (Jeno doesn’t know how to explain why he lets a small black cat take up half his bed, but this is the life he leads.) 

 

His back aches from hunching over his least favorite cast-iron cauldron, brewing a fresh batch of doxycide for the apartment manager. He’d also managed to finish several other orders for customers and finished his online Calculus quiz, so it’s been a productive day, despite the (major, Jaemin-shaped) roadbump. 

 

As per his nighttime routine, Jeno scrolls through his phone, checking social media and his messages. There’s a text from Doyoung, reminding him of a family dinner in a few weeks, another from Mark, asking whether the sleeping draught is finished because he’s too afraid to ask Renjun firsthand, and, tragically, a handful from Jaemin. 

 

**jaemin biochem lab:** can u believe it took an entire semester and a group project for me to get ur #

**jaemin biochem lab:** LOL

 

Jeno groans, fingers curling up into a fist at the cringe. 

 

**jeno biochem lab:** haha yeah 

 

Even though Jaemin had sent those texts about five hours ago, Jeno gets a response almost immediately. 

 

**jaemin biochem lab:** ur up late! partied too hard? ;)

 

Jeno thinks about how it’s a Thursday night, and how he’d spilled bundimun ooze on his new Gucci shirt and screamed until Renjun hit him over the head with a spatula and made him take it off, right there in the kitchen, so he could burn it and get rid of the smell. Doxycide is poisonous to doxies, but it’s not like witches are immune to the unbearable smell, either. 

 

**jeno biochem lab:** haha yeah

 

Jeno just wants this conversation to end, so he can go to sleep and stay that way until ten, at least. 

 

**jaemin biochem:** is “haha yeah” ur default response to everything?

 

It takes all of Jeno’s willpower not to type  _ haha yeah _ and-- maybe Jaemin has a point. 

 

**jeno biochem lab:** sorry it’s a habit

**jeno biochem lab:** n its been a long day

 

**jaemin biochem lab:** aww babe :( 

**jaemin biochem lab:** wanna talk about it?

 

Jeno refuses to acknowledge that the twist in his gut when Jaemin calls him babe is a bad feeling, not a good one. He doesn’t want Jaemin to call him babe. He wants Jaemin to disintegrate, or at the very least, leave him alone to his misery. 

 

**jeno biochem lab:** nah its nbd haha

**jeno biochem lab:** anyways when did u wanna meet to work on the presentation

 

**jaemin biochem lab: right to business huh**

**jaemin biochem lab:** i like it ;) 

 

**jeno biochem lab:** u use ;) way too much my dude

 

**jaemin biochem lab:** u could call it a habit 

 

**jeno biochem lab:** do u regularly flirt text w everybody?

 

_ Oh god, _ Jeno shouldn’t have sent that. Bundimun ooze makes him loopy. He hates making doxycide but it’s the only way the apartment manager lets them grow hemlock on their balcony. 

 

**jaemin biochem lab:** LOL yeah

**jaemin biochem lab:** i mean,,, no?

**jaemin biochem lab:** not if u dont want me to? 

 

**jeno biochem lab:** im just kidding dude relax 

**jeno biochem lab:** so when are u free?

 

**jaemin biochem lab:** saturday night maybe?

 

Jeno has no social life to speak of, so he doesn’t hesitate to agree. 

 

**jeno biochem lab:** yeah sounds good. ur place?

 

**jaemin biochem lab:** can we do urs? my step brother’s gonna have his not-bf over

**jaemin biochem lab:** if u catch my drift

 

**jeno biochem lab:** uhm

**jeno biochem lab:** my roommate isn’t a big fan of having ppl over 

**jeno biochem lab:** theres a coffee shop not far from campus tho? we could work there

 

**jaemin biochem lab:** yeah thats fine ^^ 

**jaemin biochem lab:** ill see u then!! 

**jaemin biochem lab:** u should prob sleep now :( u need to rest

 

As Jaemin texts him, Jeno’s eyes are already starting to droop. 

 

**jeno biochem lab:** yeah will do

 

**jaemin biochem lab:** sleep well honey <333 dont let the bed bugs bite!!! uwuwuwu

 

**jeno biochem lab:** k bye jaemin

  
  


☾

  
  


“Okay, I give up,” Jeno sighs, slumping in his chair and letting the hard knobs of the wood dig into his spine. “We’ve been looking for like, an hour, and nothing explains our results.” 

 

Jeno’s vision is blurry at the edges from trudging through PubMed, trying to read PDFs of papers typed in negative two font size. He just wants to go home, but he can’t because their presentation is on Monday, and Jaemin’s being a good sport about this whole thing-- he even bought Jeno coffee. 

 

Jaemin looks up from the screen of his Mac, pushing the frames of his glasses up the bridge of his nose, and it’s infuriatingly attractive. “What were you looking at just now?” 

 

Jeno waves his hand at the screen of his own laptop, disgruntled. “All the papers I’ve been reading say adding choline and sodium chloride together should should increase BetT expression more than separately. We basically got the opposite.” 

 

Jaemin hums thoughtfully. “Well, I found this paper, it looks kinda promising?” He tilts his screen towards Jeno, and it takes all of his willpower to lean forward and read the section Jaemin highlighted. 

 

“Betaine is a BetT repressor,” Jeno mumbles, eyes glossing over the words. 

 

“Extracellular sodium chloride stimulates expression of BetT, right? So choline gets turned into betaine to maintain that isotonic environment?” Jeno nods. “And adding choline intracellularly basically does the same thing-- it gets converted into betaine.” 

 

“So if we add both at the same time, we should have seen even more expression,” Jeno reiterates. “Which we didn’t.”

 

“Well, this paper was saying that betaine is a BetT repressor. So what if by adding all these osmotic stressors, it kinda cancelled out, instead of being, like, additive?” 

 

“Like the increased betaine acted as negative feedback and repressed BetT expression?” 

 

“Yeah, exactly!” 

 

Jeno blinks at the screen, the logic starting to click in his head. “That actually… makes perfect sense?” He turns his head, only to find Jaemin’s face just inches from his. Somewhere, in the back of his mind, Jeno can hear Renjun saying,  _ so he’s hot, he’s tall, he’s nice, he likes you,  _ and _ he’s smart? _

 

But right now, all he can really register is the pleasant musk of Jaemin’s cologne, the way his long eyelashes fan over the top of his cheekbones, the smudged kohl around his eyes. Jeno kind of expects it, but that doesn’t mean he’s prepared when Jaemin’s eyes lower to Jeno’s mouth. The tension spikes within a millisecond, and Jeno feels frozen in place, not sure whether he wants to run and never leave his apartment again, or kiss Jaemin. He almost feels compelled to lean forward, when--

 

“J-Jaemin-- Did you just--  _ sniff _ me?” Jeno asks incredulously, body finally catching up to Jeno’s brain as he leans away. There’s pink dusting Jaemin’s cheeks, in an uncharacteristically bashful way, and Jeno is truly at a loss. 

 

“Uhm… Yes?” 

 

Jeno blinks rapidly, trying to assess the situation that’s spiralled rather quickly out of his control. “That’s-- why?” 

 

Jaemin laughs nervously, clearly his throat. There’s a weirdly intense look in his eyes, despite the obvious embarrassment, and Jeno doesn’t know what to do about it. “You just… smell good? I guess?”  

 

Jeno knows this is a bad time to try and whiff at his armpits to try and confirm. He’s never been much of a cologne guy, and all he’d used was Renjun’s homemade shower gel this morning. It doesn’t make sense that the scent lingered, and it’s not like it even smells  _ that _ good-- though Jeno would never tell Renjun that. 

 

At Jeno’s obvious bewilderment, Jaemin scrambles to explain. “No, not like… cologne or anything. Just…  _ you. _ Like  _ you _ smell good.” 

 

The last time Jeno was told he smelled good was when he was sixteen, by a flesh-eating demon that Mark accidentally conjured up, right before it tried to eat him. Jaemin doesn’t look like a flesh-eating demon, but Jeno doesn’t want to discriminate-- demons come in all shapes and sizes. 

 

“Just-- ugh, forget I said that.” Jaemin turns around and leans forward so far that his nose is practically pressed against his computer screen. Jeno doesn’t even know how to respond, and luckily, he doesn’t have to, because his phone vibrates with a text. 

 

**spawn of lucifer:** three questions

**spawn of lucifer:** 1) have u seen hyuck he’s been missing all day

**spawn of lucifer:** 2) did u steal the rib eye i was marinating it in the fridge

**spawn of lucifer:** 3) where r u

 

**nono:** 1) omg no ?? where could he have gone ?? should i come home n look for him ?? 

**nono:** 2) what the fuck no ?? i value my life ???? 

**nono:** 3) im at the coffee shop w jaemin why

 

**spawn of lucifer:** 1) relax he’s been doing this all the time lately he’ll probably come back before u get home i was jw if he was w u

**spawn of lucifer:** 2) if u didnt take it then hyuck took it but how tf does a cat get into a fridge 

**spawn of lucifer:** 3) lmao rip in pieces 

 

**nono:** 1) DONT TELL ME TO CALM DOWN ??? MY SUGAR PLUM SUNSHINE BABY IS MISSING???? WHAT IF HE’S HURT ?? HES BEEN DOING THIS AND U DIDNT TELL ME ???

**nono:** 2) hyuck hates beef y would he steal a whole rib eye it dont add up

**nono:** 3) please save me he just sniffed me like,,, a puppy or smth ,,,, what the fuck

 

**spawn of lucifer:** 1) literally calm down he’s a magic cat im sure he can defend himself

**spawn of lucifer:** 2) THEN WHO STOLE MY FUCKING RIB EYE

**spawn of lucifer:** 3) rmbr that demon that when we were in 10th grade that tried to eat u lmao 

 

**nono:** 1) im having a WORD with donghyuck when he gets home

**nono:** 2) the only other ppl who have access to the apartment r mark n doyoung n doyoung wont touch ur cooking if his life depended on it

**nono:** 3) “rmbr that demon who tried to eat u lmao” THNX FOR THAT IM GLAD SOMEONE THOUGHT IT WAS FUNNY FUCK OFFFFFFFFFF 

 

**spawn of lucifer:** ok im tired of this number stuff 

**spawn of lucifer:** u n donghyuck need to go to therapy

**spawn of lucifer:** and i WILL find my steak-napper n if it’s mark ill kill him

**spawn of lucifer:** which reminds me mark’s back n he’s looking for u 

 

**nono:** OMG marks back ???????? he’s looking for me ?????? why ???? omg

 

**spawn of lucifer:** oh my god ur literally so embarrassing i cant

**spawn of lucifer:** he wants to say hi before he goes into hibernation

**spawn of lucifer:** i told him ur at the coffee shop he’ll prob apparate there so u have 15 sec

 

**nono:** BUT I DIDNT DRESS CUTE TODAY FUCK 

 

Jeno looks up from his phone in panic, cursing under his breath. 

 

“What’s wrong?” Jaemin asks, finally peeling himself away from his computer to watch Jeno open his front-facing camera and attempt to pat down his hair. Jeno freezes, feeling ridiculous, and locks his phone, putting it down on the table slowly. 

 

“Nothing! Just-- Uhm… A friend is gonna drop by and say hi real quick, is that okay?” 

 

“Yeah sure,” Jaemin says with a quick shrug of his shoulders, before going back to typing on their shared Google doc. The sudden indifference almost makes Jeno pout. Almost. 

 

“Jeno!” 

 

Both Jeno and Jaemin jolt in their seats as Mark steps into the coffee shop, waving unnecessarily. He looks especially dorky today, with a polo shirt tucked into khaki jorts, but Jeno’s got butterflies anyway. 

 

“Mark, hi,” Jeno says, feeling a little winding when Mark throws an arm over his shoulder and squeezes, before slipping into the seat next to him. 

 

“Missed you, my dude,” Mark says with a crooked grin. His attention then turns to Jaemin, who’s been sitting there quietly. 

 

“Oh, Mark, this is Jaemin,” Jeno rushes, feeling very rude, but unable to do anything about it. The tragedy of Jeno’s life is that he’ll probably always be a little in love with Mark. It’ll be a little challenging for his future spouse, but it’s not like Jeno can help it. 

 

“Hi,” Jaemin says, a little curt. Jeno is sure it’s just a trick of the light when he sees Jaemin’s eyes flash red. 

 

“What are you guys up to?” Mark eyes, eyes wide and inquisitive.

 

“Just working on a presentation for a class,” Jeno says. “How was your trip?” 

 

Mark sighs. “Rough, but you gotta do what you gotta do, am I right?” Jeno nods, leaning forward to rest his chin in his palm, not understanding in the least, but it’s Mark, and Jeno is morally obligated to agree with everything he says. “Glad to be back home though,” Mark says, putting his hand on the back of Jeno’s neck and stroking the hair there. It’s a familiar gesture, meant to bring comfort, and it works, just like it did when Jeno was ten and blew up his mother’s closet. 

 

The peace lasts for barely a second, because suddenly, a ferocious growl rips out of Jaemin’s throat. Jeno watches, stunned, as Jaemin stands from his seat, eyes  _ definitely _ flashing red, and turns to the nearest vacant table and flips it over. 

 

“Jaemin-- what the fuck are you doing--” Jeno starts, and  _ are those claws? _

 

“Jeno--” Mark says, voice even and grounding, as he tugs Jeno up to his feet. “We have to get him out of here.” 

 

Jeno hesitates for a second, watching Jaemin  _ snarl _ at everyone who’s looking at him in horror, before reaching out and grabbing his arm. “Jaemin, we need to go,” he says, keeping his voice low. The contact must do something to Jaemin, because the sharp, menacing claws retract back into normal nails almost instantaneously. 

 

“Take him back to the apartment,” Mark says. “I’ll fix this and meet you there.” 

 

Jeno nods, tugging at Jaemin. “C’mon.” 

 

Jaemin’s irises flicker back and forth from red to the familiar brown, eyebrows furrowing in confusion, and he stumbles after Jeno until they’re outside and hidden in an empty alleyway. 

 

“I’m really not good at this, so I need you to hang on tight, okay?” 

 

“Good at-- What?” Jeno doesn’t answer, just wraps his arms around Jaemin tightly, muttering his apartment address, and then they’re both spinning, spinning, spinning, until they land in a heap on Jeno’s couch. 

 

“What the f-fuck just--” Jeno scrambled off of Jaemin and helps him sit up. Jaemin’s skin is sickeningly pale, eyes unfocused. “Jeno, I don’t-- I feel like I’m gonna--” And then he faints. 

  
  


☾

  
  


“So… what do you think?” 

 

Mark and Jeno hover over Renjun as he holds Jaemin’s eye open and shines a flashlight into it. He moves on to Jaemin’s teeth, pulling at his upper lip to observe the canines, which Jeno could have  _ sworn _ got longer in the coffee shop. 

 

“Well, it’s kinda obvious, don’t you think?” 

 

Mark and Jeno share a look of mutual confusion, before turning to Renjun, who sighs, and mumbles something like  _ I’m surrounded by idiots, _ as he gets up from the couch. 

 

“He’s lycan.” Jeno’s jaw drops. “Well… at least partially.” The three of them stare at Jaemin’s unconscious form on the couch. He looks very much like a normal nineteen year-old, but then again, they all look pretty normal. 

 

“I don’t think he knows that,” Jeno says. 

 

Renjun snorts. “That’s gonna be an awkward family phone call, then.” He’s about to leave, tugging Mark with him, when he backtracks. “Can you let Donghyuck in? He’s been scratching at the door for the last minute.” 

 

“Jesus,” Jeno mumbles, hurrying to the door and scooping Donghyuck up. “Where have you  _ been? _ ” Donghyuck just meows innocently, tail curling around Jeno’s wrist. “We need to talk, buddy.”

 

There’s a groan from the couch, and Jeno turns just in time to see Jaemin coming to, trying to sit up on the couch. Donghyuck’s whole body goes tense, and he starts hissing. “ _ Hyuck, _ ” Jeno murmurs, rocking Donghyuck back and forth in his arms to try and get him to calm down. 

 

It doesn’t work. 

 

“Where am I?” is the last thing Jaemin manages to ask before Donghyuck is launching himself out of Jeno’s arms, right at Jaemin. “What the--” Donghyuck lets out an agitated yowl before clawing at Jaemin’s face. 

 

“Donghyuck!” Jeno yells, running over and barely managing to pry a very angry Donghyuck off of Jaemin, who’s bleeding in several places on his face. Jaemin’s eyes are wild and frantic as he looks at Jeno. 

 

“What the  _ fuck _ is going on?” he asks, and they both jolt when Donghyuck makes a strangled noise, attempting to go at Jaemin again. Jeno hugs Donghyuck to his chest, wincing as Donghyuck’s claws leave red welts across his skin. 

 

“I’m really--” Jeno grunts, trying to hold Donghyuck back. “Sorry-- Renjun! Mark!” 

 

“What the hell is that thing?” 

 

“It’s my  _ cat, _ you idiot,” Jeno says defensively, because despite nearly gouging out Jaemin’s eyeballs, Donghyuck is not a  _ thing, _ he’s a person, for god’s sake. 

 

“I’m pretty fucking sure cats don’t have six legs?” 

 

Renjun and Mark rush into the room, and it takes them a second to assess the situation. “Fuck,” Renjun hisses, already rushing to help Jeno restrain Donghyuck. “I’ll go put him in your room. He’s probably just reacting badly cuz-- yaknow.” 

 

There’s a small tussle as Renjun gets his hands around Donghyuck securely enough that he can’t jump out, and rushes down the hallway. Jeno takes a moment to catch his breath, before looking at Jaemin. Mark’s crouched down in front of him assessing the damage to his face. 

 

“Fuck,” Jaemin hisses as Mark prods at one of the cuts. 

 

“Amazing,” Mark mumbles. Jaemin shoots him a dirty look, and Mark just rolls his eyes, motioning Jeno over. “Look.” Jeno’s gaze lands where Mark’s finger points to, at the cut above Jaemin’s eyebrow, and watches as it scabs in front of their eyes, then disappears without a trace. 

 

“Holy shit,” Jeno breathes. If they had any doubt of Jaemin being supernatural, it’s gone now. 

 

“What?” Jaemin snaps. “Why are you guys looking at me like that?” 

 

Mark looks at Jaemin, then at Jeno. “You have some explaining to do.” And that’s all he says, before getting up, patting Jaemin’s shoulder, and following after Renjun. 

 

Jeno is not good at confrontation. He considers himself to be a pretty nice guy, and stays under the radar. Confrontation isn’t something he’s ever really had to deal with. And now he has a guy sitting on his couch who is a werewolf and probably doesn’t know it. There’s not a spell in his grimoire that could help him with this. 

 

“Uhm…” Jeno stammers, as Jaemin raises his fingers to where the cuts used to be, pressing down and frowning when it doesn’t sting, when there isn’t blood. 

 

“What the fuck? Am I hallucinating?” Jaemin wonders. “I stole those gummies from Yuta but I didn’t even have that many…” 

 

“You’re... you’re not uhm… hallucinating…” Jeno’s hands feel clammy, so he wipes his palms on his jeans and takes a seat. Jaemin eyes the (large) amount of space between them almost longingly, but Jeno keeps his distance. 

 

“What’s happening to me?” Jaemin asks, and for all his bravado, his voice is really small. 

 

“You might be… a werewolf?” 

 

Jaemin blinks at him. “You mean like… in fan fiction?” 

 

Of all the comparisons he could have drawn-- “I uh-- don’t know what you’re talking about.” Jaemin doesn’t have to know how much time Jeno spends in the Yuri On Ice tag. “But uhm… yeah you’re a werewolf.” 

 

Jaemin snorts. “Yeah, and you’re a witch.”

 

Jeno gapes. “Yeah, exactly!” 

 

“It was a--” Jaemin opens his mouth, then closes it. “Oh my god you’re serious. You’re actually serious.” 

 

“Yeah? Did you like, not see my cat?” Jaemin looks pale again, and Jeno doesn’t do well under pressure like this. “I mean like, he’s not  _ actually _ a cat. He’s a human-- his name is Donghyuck, by the way-- but Mark accidentally turned him into a cat when he was seventeen and he’s kinda been stuck like that ever since and--” Jeno takes a deep breath. “That’s totally not relevant because we’re supposed to be talking about you being a werewolf. I’m really bad at this. Can you tell I’m really bad at this?” 

 

Jaemin’s lips twitch up into a ghost of a smile, but it’s not all there, and it makes Jeno feel like there are hot coals in his gut. “I’d tell you your nervous rambling is cute, but I’m kinda panicking right now and I might pass out again so…” 

 

“Yeah, no that’s totally-- Yeah that’s fine. I mean, it’s not fine, that you’re panicking. But it’s normal, I think. I mean, I don’t know? Since I’ve been a witch my whole life. I’ve never heard of someone like, just suddenly becoming a werewolf-- And I’m rambling again.” Jeno winces, hanging his head. “Sorry.” 

 

“Do you know what happened to me?” 

 

“It’s probably a genetic thing? The only other way to turn into a werewolf is to get bitten and I think you would remember being bitten.” 

 

“So… Someone in my family is a werewolf?” 

 

“Yeah…” 

 

There’s an awkward pause. “That’s gonna be a weird conversation, huh?” 

 

Jeno forces himself to laugh. “Probably. But… the sooner you have it, the better. You deserve an explanation.” He pats Jaemin’s thigh consolingly. 

 

“One more question.”

 

“Shoot.” 

 

“Does your cat hate me because I’m apparently a werewolf?” 

 

Jeno doesn’t know where Jaemin is going with this. “Yeah, I think so.” 

 

Jaemin breathes a sigh of relief. “So not because he has some sixth sense that tells him I’m a shitty person and I’m not allowed to date you?” 

 

For about the millionth time today, Jeno is speechless. “You-- You’re still on that? Even after all of--  _ this? _ ” 

 

Jaemin smiles, sheepish, and Jeno can’t help but think he’s kind of sort of maybe cute. “I mean… I still like you. And now we have something in common...” Jaemin tilts his head. “Sort of?”

 

Now that Jaemin’s mentioned it, Jeno can’t help but let that knot in his chest unfurl. The idea of being in a relationship with Jaemin, and telling him, somewhere down the line, about magic and the supernatural and Jeno’s lucrative side business as an apothecary, had terrified him. The idea of putting his emotions on the line, only to potentially have them trampled out of fear and mistrust is not something Jeno had been willing to do. 

 

But Jaemin is taking everything surprisingly well-- almost too well. The werewolf DNA in Jaemin’s blood inexplicably ties him to Jeno’s world now. Given how understanding he’s been so far, Jeno suspects that even if Jaemin wasn’t showing late-onset lycanthropy, he’d probably have been okay with everything. 

 

“Wait a minute-- Is that why you’ve been curving me all semester? Because you didn’t wanna tell me about all of this?” 

 

Jeno sinks into the couch, embarrassed. “I plead the fifth.”

  
  


☾

  
  


“Poor guy,” Renjun murmurs. They’re sitting on the couch, watching Jaemin through the glass doors of their balcony as he speaks on the phone with his mother. (“Don’t touch anything while you’re out there,” Jeno had warned. “It’s probably poisonous and can kill you in like, two seconds.”)

 

“Why do you say that?” Jeno takes a sip of his hot cocoa, because this situation called for hot cocoa. 

 

“Can you imagine? Going your whole life not knowing about this? Like? Didn’t he ever feel… different? What did his parents think would happen?” Renjun wonders.

 

“I dunno… He said I smelled really good to him. Maybe he’s always had a good sense of smell?” 

 

Renjun blinks. “That’s-- When you told me that I thought it was kinda creepy but now that we have the whole picture--”

 

“What?” Jeno sits up. “What are you not telling me?” 

 

“Are you literally that stupid? Do I have to explain werewolf biology to you?” 

 

“I didn’t pay attention to that part, okay? It’s already been established that I’m not that good a witch.” 

 

Renjun rolls his eyes. “Werewolves believe in that soulmate stuff, you know? One of the first ways they tell their soulmate apart from everyone else is their scent.” 

 

It takes a moment for the weight of the words to hit. “Oh my god.” Jeno almost hates himself for the fact that his first thought thereafter is that his chances of marrying Mark just got that much smaller. “Oh god.” 

 

“I mean, we don’t know for sure, but…” Renjun grins salaciously. “If it’s true, you could do worse.” 

 

Soulmates are a completely abstract concept to Jeno, and he doesn’t know how to even begin wrapping his mind around it. Too much already happened today, so he’s not going to think about it right now. 

 

“God, I hope he’s not an Alpha,” Jeno groans. “I’ll actually kill him.” 

 

(Jeno doesn’t really know what to think of soulmates. But the idea of actually dating Jaemin now, doesn’t seem so bad. Alpha or not.) 

 

(Somewhere from inside Jeno’s room, he can almost hear Donghyuck protesting.) 

  
  


**Author's Note:**

> will probably write another part to this where we find out where donghyuck is going n what the hell happened to renjun's rib eye  
> let me know your thoughts <33333
> 
> [twitter](https://twitter.com/hyuckheis) || [curiouscat](https://curiouscat.me/hyuckheis) || [tumblr](https://hvuckheis.tumblr.com/)


End file.
